Edina Community Lutheran Church v. State, No. A07-131.

• Decision Date: 05 February 2008
• Docket Number: No. A07-131.
• Citation: 745 N.W.2d 194
• Parties: EDINA COMMUNITY LUTHERAN CHURCH, Respondent, Unity Church of St. Paul, Respondent, v. STATE of Minnesota, Appellant.
• Court: Minnesota Court of Appeals

745 N.W.2d 194

EDINA COMMUNITY LUTHERAN CHURCH, Respondent Unity Church of St. Paul, Respondent, v. STATE of Minnesota, Appellant.

No. A07-131.

Court of Appeals of Minnesota.

February 5, 2008.

David L. Lillehaug, Frederikson & Byron, P.A., Minneapolis, MN, for respondent Edina Community Lutheran Church.

Marshall H. Tanick, Mansfield, Tanick & Cohen, P.A., Minneapolis, MN, for respondent Unity Church of St. Paul.

Lori Swanson, Attorney General, Peter Marker, Jocelyn F. Olson, Assistant Attorneys General, St. Paul, MN, for appellant.

Considered and decided by STONEBURNER, Presiding Judge; HALBROOKS, Judge; and MINGE, Judge.

OPINION

MINGE, Judge.

Appellant State of Minnesota challenges the district court's grant of a permanent injunction barring enforcement of certain provisions of the 2005 Minnesota Citizens' Personal Protection Act (the 2005 Act) against respondent churches. Appellant contends that the district court erred by (a) concluding that the 2005 Act excessively burdens the rights of respondents protected by Minn. Const. art. I, § 16; (b) determining that the 2005 Act violates respondents' rights under U.S. Const. amend. I; and (c) finding that the 2005 Act violates the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000cc. Appellant also argues that the recognition of an exemption for the churches from statutory provisions generally applicable to private establishments violates the Establishment Clause of the federal constitution.

Because the district court did not err in granting injunctive relief based on the state constitutional provision guaranteeing religious liberty, and because the district court's recognition of an exemption does not constitute an impermissible establishment of religion, we affirm in part. Because this decision rests on independent and adequate state constitutional grounds, we do not reach the question of whether the district court erred in finding the 2005 Act unconstitutional under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Finally, because we conclude that the provisions of the 2005 Act pertaining to the exclusion of guns from private property do not constitute "land use regulations," we reverse that part of the district court's decision finding the 2005 Act to be in violation of RLUIPA.

FACTS

In April 2003, the Minnesota Legislature adopted 2003 Minn. Laws ch. 28 (the 2003 Act). The legislation was immediately challenged in at least two separate actions: its enforcement was temporarily enjoined by one district court at the request of religious organizations asserting violations of state and federal constitutional provisions, and it was declared by a different district court to violate the single-subject requirement of Minn. Const. art. IV, § 17. See Unity Church of St. Paul v. State, 694 N.W.2d 585, 590, 599 n. 2 (Minn. App.2005) (discussing different challenges to the 2003 Act), review dismissed (Minn. June 9, 2005).

On appeal from the judgment in favor of the challengers in the single-subject suit, this court affirmed the determination that articles 2 and 3 of the session law were unconstitutional because they were not germane to the same subject as article 1, which contained many provisions on topics relating to natural resources, but which were unrelated to handgun permitting and firearm regulation. Id. at 595. Although the district court had indicated its willingness to find the 2003 Act unconstitutional under Minnesota's Freedom—of—Conscience Clause, Minn. Const. art. I, § 16, this court declined to offer an advisory opinion on the alternative arguments raised by the challengers, leaving those issues for another day. Id. at 600.

This court's opinion was filed on April 12, 2005, and the state petitioned the supreme court for further review. Id., pet. for rev. filed (Minn. May 11, 2005). Shortly thereafter, the legislature reenacted the provisions of articles 2 and 3 "retroactively and without interruption from April 28, 2003" and added certain amendments in a session law that dealt exclusively with the permitting and regulation of firearms. 2005 Minn. Laws ch. 83, §§ 1-11 at 442-50 (the 2005 Act). The state then withdrew its petition for further review of this court's ruling concerning the 2003 Act.

The respondents on this appeal are Edina Community Lutheran Church (Edina) and Unity Church of St. Paul (Unity) (or collectively "churches"). Both were involved in a challenge to the 2003 Act, and both argued in that action that the; act violated freedom-of-conscience and religious-association rights protected by the Minnesota and federal constitutions. As indicated above, those claims were not addressed on appeal because the act was declared unconstitutional on other grounds. See Unity Church of St. Paul, 694 N.W.2d at 600. After the legislature reenacted the Minnesota Citizens' Personal Protection Act in 2005, Edina and Unity brought the action now before us, seeking injunctive relief on grounds that were substantially similar to their earlier challenge.

Here, the district court granted permanent injunctive relief, prohibiting enforcement against the respondent churches of the statutory provisions relating to signage and personal notice, parking areas, and landlords. For ease of reference, we refer' to the following provisions of the 2006 Minnesota Statutes as the "challenged provisions": Minn.Stat. § 624.714, subds. 17(a) and (b) (2006) (prescribing two options for notifying visitors that guns are banned from private establishments);, 17(c) and 18(c) (barring private establishments and employers from prohibiting firearms in parking areas and facilities); and 17(e) (prohibiting landlords from restricting the possession of firearms by tenants or their guests).

The churches submitted the matter to the district court on the basis of a stipulated record, and the parties do not dispute the facts. That record contains uncontroverted affidavits from the churches describing the religious burden imposed by the challenged provisions. Edina provided affidavits from its bishop and pastors stating that compliance with the act would violate sincerely held religious beliefs and the church's statement of mission and purpose, which includes a commitment to peacemaking and nonviolence in all relationships. Edina's religious leaders assert that the church is considered to be a place of sanctuary. Regarding the requirement that signs be posted at every entrance, Edina's religious leaders explained that the entrances of Lutheran churches are reserved for important religious messages and this can be traced to Martin Luther's act of nailing the Ninety-Five Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany.

Edina owns and operates a church building, contiguous parking areas, and a contiguous playground for children. The lower level of the church, which is used for Sunday school instruction and nursery school, is directly accessible from the parking lot. Ediva provided specific evidence that its parking lot is used for worship activities, including the Vigil of Easter. As part of its religious mission, Edina asserts that it serves as employer of religious persons and landlord for a licensed child-care center that is operated in its church building. Finally, Edina provided evidence that its leadership and congregation unanimously seek to prohibit firearms on all of the church's property.

Unity also provided uncontroverted affidavits from its co-ministers. Unity's mission and values establish that the church strives to be a free and inclusive religious community that provides a place of sanctuary and is openly welcoming. On Sunday mornings, Unity has greeters at entrances to the church building to personally welcome visitors. Unity asserted that compliance with the signage and personal notice requirements of the act would be inconsistent with its mission to provide a safe sanctuary and welcoming place of worship. Unity's building—encompassing approximately 54,000 square feet—houses a large sanctuary and chapel, office space, classrooms, a nursery, gathering places and meeting rooms, a parish hall and kitchen, libraries, and a courtyard. Unity also considers two parking lots on church property important in accomplishing its religious mission. These lots, along with the church building, are used for weddings, funerals, religious education classes for youth and adults, prayer vigils, car washes and other fundraisers, and numerous community meetings and events.

Unity is also a landlord and an employer. At times, Unity's church premises serve as an overflow homeless shelter for Ramsey County's Project Home. Families arrive and leave by taxi through a church parking lot and, when needed, the church uses Sunday school classrooms as bedrooms. As part of Unity's commitment to peacemaking and nonviolence, church leaders have adopted resolutions prohibiting firearms on all church property. The resolutions reflect Unity's belief that the challenged provisions violate the right to use church property to communicate and exercise religious beliefs and burden the right to welcome worshippers and visitors as Unity sees fit.

The state does not challenge the sincerity of the religious beliefs asserted by the churches. The state presented affidavit evidence on the purposes underlying adoption of the 2003 Act and the 2005 Act, but did not present specific evidence on the impact, if any, of enjoining enforcement of the challenged provisions on church property.

ISSUES

I. Did the district court err by concluding that the challenged provisions violate respondent churches' fundamental religious liberty rights protected by Minn. Const. art. I, § 16?

II. Did the district court err by finding that the challenged provisions violate freedom-of-association rights protected by the

First Amendment of the United States Constitution?

III. Does the district court's grant of a permanent injunction and recognition of a religious exemption violate...